Terrebonne General | Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center Treats First Cancer Patient with Elekta Infinity

HOUMA, La. – Terrebonne General | Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center announces its investment in the new Elekta Infinity™, a highly sophisticated radiation treatment system for cancer that substantially reduces the time required for radiotherapy while giving clinicians the ability to treat targets more aggressively.

“With the introduction of this state-of-the-art technology, patients stand to benefit in multiple ways,” said Jonas Fontenot, Ph.D., M.B.A., chief operating officer, and Dr. Charles M. Smith, chief of physics. “We’re now able to limit exposure to radiation by expediting their treatments while also targeting cancer with an unmatched level of precision.”

Elekta Infinity incorporates Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (V.M.A.T.), an innovative way to deliver radiation treatments that is a significant improvement over conventional approaches. With Elekta’s V.M.A.T. technology, the target area is continuously irradiated while the beam's source rotates around the patient.

To minimize unnecessary exposure to radiation, Elekta Infinity incorporates an ultra-low dose

capabilities through active leakage reduction to ensure minimal dose to critical structures, and Elekta Infinity incorporates real-time assurance that the intended dose is delivered as precisely as planned.

Clinicians using Elekta Infinity can create a dose that conforms very tightly to the target area in significantly less time than with traditional techniques. Elekta V.M.A.T. achieves this with

sophisticated computer programming that simultaneously controls five different system

components (gantry position, gantry speed, leaves of the multi-leaf collimator, collimator angle, and dose rate).

“As we continue to provide unparalleled cancer care, patients expect to have access to the best resources, including treatment equipment,” said Amy Boudreaux, director of Terrebonne General | Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. “This piece of technology gives both physicians and patients supreme clinical confidence by its ability to aggressively target tumors while minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissue.”

Photo: Elekta Infinity™